The Pros and Cons Of Remote Teams

Working from home can often seem like a dream come true, especially on a cold Monday morning, when the rain keeps falling, and you’d rather stay in bed than go to work. Modern technology has made it possible for people in certain lines of work to work from anywhere and everywhere, and many companies are taking advantage of this fact. Imagine working from a beach every day? If the beach has a reliable internet connection, you could be sipping a cocktail and working via one of the dozens of online freelance hubs out there.

However, if you are the employer, having your team work from home may not sound like the best idea. You may be asking yourself is it even feasible, and how can you keep track of the work your teams do, when you are not there to monitor them, and how well can they cooperate, when they don’t see each other.

If you prefer being able to walk into someone’s office and having a heart-to-heart about the state of the company, having a remote team might not be for you. If you are on the other hand ready to embrace some of the advancements the 21st century has brought to the workplace, you can easily cut costs and improve productivity, all by having your people work from the comfort of their own homes.

You will need to set things up properly however. First of all, you will need to hire the right accountant who will keep track of the payroll for you, and all the other matters that arise from having a remote team. Check out reliable accounting services, and make sure to choose the ones that best suit your business needs. After that, you need to set up a reliable means of communication, and you are all set. Here is what you can expect:

The benefits of flexibility

Working from home is above all a huge flexibility bonus. Even if you have strict working hours, there is no commute to think about, a business attire to prepare, no need to rush out of the house blindly right into rush hour. Your team will simply be able to roll out of bed, and roll into the office. They will be able to spend more time with the people they love, doing things they love, which will make them much more appreciative of the lifestyle they have, and thus more productive at work.

An increase in productivity

When they are happier and more comfortable, your employees will be able to give it their best during working hours. There will be no distractions in the form of traffic and office chit chat. Studies have shown that working from the comfort of your home can increase productivity by an astonishing 13%, which can naturally translate into other benefits as well.

Work-life balance

Employees are under more pressure today than they ever were before, in certain ways. Expectations have risen, and it can be very difficult to deal with the stress of the modern workplace. Burnout is not uncommon, and a drop in productivity is experienced by most employees at some point in their career. This includes people at all levels of responsibility, from the CEO to the desk clerk. However, when working from home, employees feel they can better control their working environment, and their entire life, which makes them more focused, and ready to tackle more obstacles.

Cutting down costs

Needless to say, when you have your people working from home, you don’t need an office space. You can rent a board room if you need to have meetings, that is if your teams are working from the same city, but you can easily establish conference calls and work like that. You will be saving a lot of resources that would otherwise be spent on utility and maintenance bills and office supplies, funds that can be better spent elsewhere. Imagine if you could hire an extra person, who could spread the workload out more evenly.

Boosted employee engagement

Finally, working from home is a perk, let’s not claim it’s not. Your employees will know you care about their well-being, and that you want them to stay with the company, and be happy with their position. This will again make them feel more valued, and you’ve guessed it, more productive. Make sure your people know they are valued even if you can’t tell them so in person, and they will be more ready to give their best to every project.